Land Baron
Land Baron is a slang term for the individuals who, very cheaply, purchased sole property rights to massive quantities of land in what would later become the Allied Midsourceland Territories. History When Orlais began restarted their settlement effort of the Northern Sourcelands, they eventually launched a war against the Noveran Settlers to the South of their own settlements, which was exclusively a military effort, as Novera primarily expanded through military might. A Pointless Victory The Orlesian forces prevailed, but it was a bitter war, and the Noverans were ultimately defeated through betrayal from among their own ranks. As it turned out, only Novenarra was a profitable holding, and it remained under self-rule. That left Segovia as the sole victory point of the conflict, but sacking the city to grant spoils would sully the, already narrow victory, so instead all who had participated were offered settlement rights. New Settlement Rights It was declared that the area known as the Midsourcelands would be ungoverned by the Crown of Orlais, but that only those granted settlement rights would own land there, unless legally obtained from those who did hold settlement rights - though this did not count for Segovia, and soon after, general settlement rights reopened for all individuals, but the soldiers from the war gained an advantage, and were able to get a head start on what could be the most profitable real-estate-venture ever, as with no governance, they were free to do what they wanted on their land, without having to worry about taxes, tariffs or how, or to whom they sold their goods. The Rise of the Land Barons While there was, from a legal perspective, no difference between a landowner owning a single acre of land, and someone owning 500 acres, the officers who participated in the war were granted massive quantities of land, and many soon bought more, and these individuals became known as the Land Barons of the Midsourcelands, because they came to virtually control the economy in the area, and their word was law upon their own lands - and as such, they ignored a number of laws, allowing them to expand the agriculture of the area, making the Midsourcelands completely self-sustainable, and with there being no taxes, the people lived so well that people flocked to the Midsourcelands. Illegal Industry The real jewel of the Midsourcelands was the illegal industries that sprung up - being legal there, of course. This included advanced firearms productions, blatant disregard of patents and copyrights, Source Technology and more - they even created an illegal railroad (technology restricted by Estheim) to ease the burden of their massive growing industrial sector. A Costly Mistake As it turned out, the decision to release sovereign rights was a dramatic mistake made by an inexperienced King of Orlais, who didn't want to disappoint the men who served in his first military campaign. Many attempts followed to rescind the rights given, some were literal orders given directly by the crown, instructing that the rights had literally been revoked, but the Land Barons simply ignored this, and continued to act as if their rights were intact, thus calling the Crown's bluff. The King had hoped they would have risen up in rebellion, so he could swiftly erase his mistake, then paint them all as traitors later, but he was unwilling to be seen as dishonest by his people, by landing the first strike, and ended up not pushing the issue. Political Power The Land Barons soon became very political, and their political tool was the old Noveran Port City of Segovia, which became the local trade capital. In Segovia, those that came to buy the cheap goods made in the Midsourcelands, many of which were illegal to produce elsewhere, were sold with a minor port tariff on them, and the people who resulted in the most port tariffs being earned were given City Council Seats in return. The Way of the Gun Because of the nature of landownership in the Midsourcelands, there was no police force or military. Local settlements had to form militias and settlements signed charters to agree that they would elect a Mayor and that the Mayor appointed a Sheriff to keep the peace, but on the land of the Land Barons, might made right, and the only law that mattered was tooth for tooth - the promise of generations of violence done upon those who raised a hand against the Land Barons, and this began to facilitate a culture of outlaws in the area. Decline The Land Barons suffered a major setback in power and recognition when the Allied Midsourceland Territories formed, and while impossible to strip the Barons of their land entirely, a decree was made that unused land could be claimed by anyone, thus taking away a vast amount of indirect power that the Land Barons held - which angered many of the Land Barons who styled themselves as the aristocracy of the Midsourcelands, very contrary to the spirit of the region. Prevailing Baronies The Land Barons prevailed, even if many of them eventually disappeared, and even in the Modern Era, a small number of old rich families with massive estates remain in the Midsourcelands, still styled as Land Barons by the locals. Known Land Baron Families This is an incomplete list of known Land Baron families. * Caldera - The Caldera family were among the first Land Barons, and during the early Colonial Era, the family commanded its own militia. * Dondarick - The Dondarick family are Noveran in origin, but were among the Novenarran turn-coats that helped win the war for Segovia, and as such, they were among the first Land Barons. * Gathrick - The Gathrick family were among the first Land Barons and settled land very close to Segovia. * Hadred - The Hadred family would perhaps have a shot at being considered nobility if they hadn't migrated to the Source Lands, due to their heritage. Among the first to settle as Land Barons, they have since gone in many directions. * Ravenmont - Among the original Land Barons, but this family's fortune dwindled toward end of the Colonial Era, though it did make a comeback, but for quite some time, they were Land Barons only through ownership of land, which at the time, was not making them any money. * Tassel - The Tassel family were among the first Land Barons, though they sold off significant quantities of their land and invested heavily in mining stakes and industry. * Victorion - a family that made it big on arms sales, though their history is somewhat murky, it seems they may have ties to Orlesian Nobility, but they purchased their way to becoming Land Barons long after the initial settling of the region.